(Guyana Times)President Donald Ramotar has unreservedly condemned the barrage of attacks on civil servants by opposition forces and newspapers that support what has become an ongoing and intensifying assault on the integrity of people making vital contributions to the development of Guyana.
Speaking at the annual tribute to Dr Cheddi Jagan at Babu John, Port Mourant, Corentyne on Sunday, the president expressed total disgust at what he described as recurring baseless news reports about head of the Privatisation Unit, Winston Brassington, saying the attacks have clearly become a preoccupation and obsession on the part of some sections of the media in recent months.
“When I look at the papers this morning, the vicious attacks that continue on civil servants in our society are evident,” said Ramotar. “These are nasty, sustained and vicious attacks on Mr Brassington, who is not a politician, but just a professional working with government. What they want to do is stifle professionals from wanting to make a contribution to the development of this country.”
The president noted that the attacks have now extended to include foreign nationals, in particular, the Chinese who are working legitimately and diligently on the Marriott Hotel project in Kingston, Georgetown.
“Let me tell you this, we will show you that China has not exploited any country. In fact, the record of China is quite the opposite –- it has instead been helping to build other societies in Africa and other parts of the world,” said the head of state.
He urged Guyanese to jointly rally against the vindictive tactics that the opposition parties are now employing to prevent government from carrying out its mandate to bring further development to all citizens.
“And we must stand up to these things. We must stand up and make the voice of the majority heard,” said Ramotar, adding that the attacks seem to be coming from people who have entered a financial arrangement to oppose the government.
“But we can take it… we have skin like the rhinoceros,” declared Ramotar, asserting that public servants and ministers of government will not be subdued by the cheap bullying of the opposition and the media houses which give them unbridled coverage.
Against all decency
“Such attacks go against all decency. I stand here today and call on you to put an immediate end to these attacks,” he said, while urging public servants to let their voices be heard as they stand firm in the midst of the barrage from the opposition.
The president reminded those at the ceremony that no one was persecuted as much as the late President Dr Cheddi Jagan, saying he never surrendered. He urged that as a tribute to the late head of state, the fight should be taken back to the opposition and their media supporters.
The gathering was reminded that the accusation brought against Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee, in relation to the Linden unrest, was deemed baseless by the Commission of Inquiry, and the minister has now been vindicated of all wrongdoing by an independent body.
Ramotar accused the opposition parties of continually trampling on the Constitution and trying to befuddle innocent people into thinking that they mean well. He noted that some of the same personalities who rose up against Dr Jagan are still around today and that they are using their influence to tamper with the development of the nation. “Some are using the privilege of owning and working for a newspaper to attack democracy,” he said.
“They hate the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and they will forever hate us, because we brought an end to a dark era in which they benefited from wrongdoing in their own selfish ways,” said Ramotar. The era he alluded to was when the political authorities of the People’s National Congress (PNC) administration made decisions about the country’s future.
“Why do they hate us? They hate us because they made their money. They made their money at a time when things in this country were extremely bad. They were the smugglers and backtrackers. But they are now the rich ones who do not have authority, and they use the media that are friendly to their destructive messages of hate and vindictiveness,” added the president.
